On June 16 in NYR history: Second team all star honors

What happened on June 16 in the history of the New York Rangers

While 1994 will go down in New York Rangers history as one of the greatest years in franchise history, when it came to regular season awards, the Blueshirts did not exactly win the jackpot.  On this date in 1994, Brian Leetch and Adam Graves were named a Second Team All-Stars.  The only other honor afforded to a Ranger was the King Clancy Memorial Trophy won by Graves.

While individual honors are voted on before the playoffs begin, the Rangers did win the Presidents’ Trophy, finishing six points ahead of the New Jersey Devils so it wasn’t like they were not a success.

So, who were the First Team All-Stars who finished ahead of the Ranger players?  Brendan Shanahan made the first team at left wing.  Shanahan scored 52 goals as did Graves, but he led the league in shots, shorthanded goals and hat tricks. He finished with 102 points compared to Graves with 79.  You cannot argue with that selection.

On defense, the First Team All-Stars were Scott Stevens and Ray Bourque.  Joining Leetch on the Second Team was Al MacInnis.  For Bourque it was his 11th time as a First Team All-Star, setting an NHL record.   While he led all defensemen in scoring with 91 points, it was only two points more than Sergei Zubov who led the Rangers in scoring.  The Bruin legend scored 20 goals and added 70 assists.

Scott Stevens made the first team because of his sparkling won/lost rating of +53, best in the NHL.  Stevens scored 18 goals and had 78 points for the Devils, who had the second best record in the league.

Fellow Second Team All-Star Al MacInnis of Calgary led all blueliners with 28 goals.  His reward was to be traded to the Blues after the season.

How does Leetch compare?  He scored 23 goals, second to MacInnis.   He finished with 79 points, fourth best among defensemen.  But what has to be taken into account was how important he was to the Rangers’ offense. Leetch was on ice for more goals and more power play goals than any other NHL player, including forwards and defensemen.  He was on ice for 63% of the Rangers’ goals.  No one else was even close.

A valid (and unbiased) argument could be made that Leetch deserved the First Team slot over Bourque and that the Bruin got the votes because of his reputation as as opposed to his season, but it is still a close decision.  He did lead all defenders in scoring and the Bruins did finish sixth overall in the NHL.

Of course, Leetch took home the hardware that counts the most, the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.  Winning that award makes any regular season awards pale in comparison. He would go on to win the Norris Trophy in 1997 as a First Team All-Star for the third and last time.

Today’s birthdays

25 NHL players have been born on June 16 with one coach a seven former Rangers calling it their birthday.

Rick Nash was born on this date in 1984 in Brampton, Ontario.  He was the first overall pick in the 2002 draft by the Columbus Blue Jackets.  He seemed destined for greatness when he led the NHL in goals at age 19 and was long coveted by Rangers GM Glen Sather.  He finally came to New York in a blockbuster deal in 2012.  The big left winger played six seasons in New York and was on the team that made it to the Final in 2014, but although he was a quality player, it was his lack of production in the playoffs that marked his stay with the Rangers.  He scored only 14 goals in 73 playoff games, compared to a regular season 82 game average of 32 goals. He  was hampered by injuries including concussions late in his career and he was forced to retire after being traded to Boston in 2018.

Derek Sanderson was born on this date in 1946 in Niagara Falls, Ontario and was one of the most flamboyant players of his generation. After winning the Calder Trophy in 1968, he played on two Stanley Cup championship teams in Boston. He made headline when he jumped to the WHA to play for the Philadelphia Blazers for a contract that made him the highest paid athlete in the world.  He played only eight games for the Blazers and his contract was bought out and he return to the Bruins.  The center was traded to the Rangers in 1974 after a feud with his Boston coach.  He had one good season in New York and then was dealt to the Blues.  He was most famous for opening a bar called Bachelors III with Joe Namath.   Sanderson was known as one of the best faceoff men in the NHL and a top defensive player.

Roger Neilson was a former coach of the Rangers who was born on this date in 1934 in Toronto, Ontario.  He coached the team for two and a half years, winning the Presidents’ Trophy in 1992.   He coached the Vancouver Canucks to the Stanley Cup Final in 1982 but in New York, he didn’t see eye to eye with Mark Messier and that was his downfall.  Neilson eight different teams over 17 seasons in the NHL. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2002.

Steve Larmer was a right winger born on this date in 1961 in Peterborough, Ontario.  He spent 13 years with the Chicago Blackhawks, winning the Calder Trophy in 1983 and topping the 40 goal mark five times.  He was an iron man, playing every game for 11 straight seasons. In 1993 he got into a contract dispute with the team and held out, breaking his streak of 884 games with the same team, an NHL record.  He was traded to Hartford who flipped him to the Rangers the same day.   He was a member of the 1994 Stanley Cup championship team and played the next season before retiring at age 33.

Chris McAllister was born on this date in 1975 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.  A defenseman, he played seven seasons in the NHL for five different teams, ending his NHL career playing 12 games for the Rangers in 2004 traded at the deadline by the Colorado Avalanche for Matthew Barnaby.

Alexandre Giroux was a center/left wing born on this date in 1981 in Quebec City, Quebec.  Drafted by the Ottawa Senators, he was traded to the Rangers with Karel Rachunek in exchange for Greg de Vries.  He spent three full seasons with the Wolf Pack in the AHL, making it to New York for one scoreless game in March 2005. He played 47 more games for three different teams in the NHL.

Emerson Etem was born on this date in 1992 in Long Beach, California.  He was a first round pick by the Anaheim Ducks in 2010 and after three seasons  with the Ducks he was traded to the Rangers for Carl Hagelin in a deal to create some cap space.  He was a bust in New York with three assists in 19 games and the right winger was traded to Vancouver.

Kelly Burnett was born on June 16, 1926 in Lachine, Quebec.  He was a center who made it to the NHL for three games with the Rangers in the 1952-53 season.  He was loaned to Syracuse in the AHL after that season and he played eight more years in pro hockey, never making it back to the NHL.